The Atoms of Cognition: A Theory of Ground Epistemics

Seng Beng Ho, National University of Singapore

Abstract

We propose a set of “atomic cognitive operational
representations” on which higher level cognitive representations and
processes can be built, thus providing fundamental building blocks for cognitive
mechanisms necessary for intelligent actions. The fundamental concepts involved
are elemental temporal changes of some quantities and in this representational
scheme the temporal dimension is explicitly represented to fully characterize the
meanings of the concepts involved at the epistemic ground level. This provides
full grounding for all subsequent concepts that are built upon them, allowing
cognitive systems embodying these concepts to have full and complete
understanding and characterization of the concepts involved that it can use for
various cognitive ends. This provides a firm theoretical foundation for the
study of cognition and intelligence.